Inside the Lines: “I can’t believe this is the land from which I came”

A quick description of what Inside The Lines will be before we get into it:

Our illustrator at OogeeWogee, Michael White, has a gift at bringing ideas and visions to life in a tangible way where we can see, on paper (or on screen), what was merely a thought a short time before. With that said, lyrics has a way of painting vivid pictures and images with mere spoken word and as critical listeners of the art, many of us tend to visualize these lyrics and can literally see what these rappers are saying.

Inside The Lines is a series where we take some of rap’s most vivid lyrics and translate them into an illustrated visual. This is a place where we can see with our ears and listen with our eyes.

This week’s Inside the Lines, we take a look into the message behind the song “I can’t believe this is the land from which I came”.

In the year 1996, Michael Jackson released his fourth single “They Don’t Care About Us” from the album “HIStory: Past, Present and Future, Book I”; This remains as one of the most controversial song Michael has ever produced.

The song was scrutinized by the media, saying that its lyrics were anti-Semitic and considered to be anti-racist. The song’s videos were both directed by Spike Lee, the version was Michael Jackson was filmed in a Long Island jail, with footage of human rights abuse references. This video was banned in the US and radio stations were reluctant to play the song.

Listen and watch for yourself and let us know what you think.

Beat me, hate me
You can never break me
Will me, thrill me
You can never kill me
Do me, Sue me
Everybody do me
Kick me, strike me
Don’t you black or white me

Tell me what has become of my life
I have a wife and two children who love me
I am the victim of police brutality, now
I’m tired of bein’ the victim of hate
You’re rapin’ me of my pride
Oh, for God’s sake
I look to heaven to fulfill its prophecy
Set me free

Tell me what has become of my rights
Am I invisible because you ignore me?
Your proclamation promised me free liberty, now
I’m tired of bein’ the victim of shame
They’re throwing me in a class with a bad nameI can’t believe this is the land from which I came
You know I do really hate to say it
The government don’t want to see
But if Roosevelt was livin’
He wouldn’t let this be, no, no